Chapter 1
Darks time have fallen the peaceful country of Hoshido. Their neighboring country Nohr, after being relatively silent for a few years; decided to start a war with Hoshido. Now the citizens of Hoshido were under the constant threat of an attack, especially the citizens living near the country’s border. One such village was the quiet fishing town of Hiesen. Hiesen was located right smack on the bottom left corner of Hoshido where it was located near a crystal clear lake. For four years now, the village has been destroyed by the war and rebuilt by the hands of villagers constantly, trapped in a never ending cycle. To make matters worse, Hiesen had its own issues internally when dealing with the antics of a young adult, Phy. Despite nearing the age of becoming an adult, Phy had all the energy of a curious child. His family had vanished when he was a youngster and he had been living with his next door neighbors, the Fans. The Fans were a normal family with a boy slightly younger than Phy named Trent (or TF for short). Trent unfortunately was always dragged into Phy’s antics (like putting hot sauce in the chief’s mutton) and together they were known as the bane of Hiesen. Unknown to the pair, destiny had a different plan for them rather than to be ordinary villagers. It started out like any day. The rest of the villagers were cleaning up the remains of the last attack from Nohr. The lack of support from the capital also added to the already high tension. And to avoid being forced to work, Phy and TF decided to spend the day fishing. Phy sat on his rump while keeping his eyes focused on the bobber. TF stood nearby with his father’s bow tucked beneath his elbow. “Ah,” TF said while he stretched. “Now this is the life. Just relaxing and fishing with my pal.” “Just like we do every day,” Phy muttered as he tugged on the pole. “And what we will probably do tomorrow and the day after…” “Don’t look so glum Phy. Think of the positives. Um…the village hates you…er… your parents are probably dead… yeah never mind.” Phy snorted. “Who cares about that crap? I’m just thinking about the future!” “What about the future,” TF asked? “Well what do you see yourself doing in 10 years?” “…I’ll probably move out and start a family in this village and… go fishing a lot.” “Exactly! Not much to look forward too. That’s why I’m heading out soon and making myself known to the world!” Phy said this so dramatically that he forgot about what he was doing. “Um Phy,” TF said while pointing at the bobber. “Fish!” “Ah dam it,” Phy said as he started to reel in the line. He picked up the pace and gave a huge tug causing the minuscule fish on the hook to be flung out of the water. Quick as a flash, TF pulled out the bow and fired a single arrow. The air soared through the air and made direct contact with the fish. However, the arrow’s force was a little too much for the line as the line snapped. Together, the arrow and the fish flew across the lake and vanished into the woods on the other side. “I’m sorry Phy,” Tf sadly said. “I didn’t expect that to happen.” “No worries.” Phy stood up and started to walk around the lake. “Well let’s go retrieve it. Besides your dad will have a fit if we lose another arrow.” “That’s true,” TF noted and quickly tailed after Phy. Within a few minutes, the duo made their way around the lake and began their hunt for the missing arrow. “Well I think that might have been your shot yet,” Phy said as he examined a patch of grass. “Probably on the same level as one of Prince Takumi’s shot.” TF blushed. “It wasn’t that good. Besides I’m sure the Prince would have remembered exactly where his arrow landed.” Together they made their way into a deeper and darker portion of the forest. TF pointed straight ahead and exclaimed, “Look! I found the arrow.” It was true. The arrow was stuck onto the base of an oak tree. TF rushed forward to retrieve it will Phy felt unnerved. ‘If the arrows there…then where the fish’ Phy thought. A yelp caused Phy to resurface from his mind as TF was pinned to the floor and his arms were tied. Phy rushed forward and a harsh voice said, “Take one more step and he dies.” Phy gritted his teeth as he whispered, “Nohrian bandits.” Four grizzly looking men stood in the clearing. The one on the far left dangled the fish in the air. “Thanks for the snack boys. And that village will have to pay a ransom for your safe return.” “Good luck with that,” Phy snarled. “Take it easy boy,” the head bandit said as he placed his right foot on the back of TF’s head. “We wouldn’t want your friend to get hurt?” TF whimpered beneath the foot and odor of the bandits. The head bandit bent down and lifted TF to his feet. “You,” he barked at the bandit next to him. “Take this runt over to his friend and tie both of them up.” “Sure thing boss.” The bandit nodded and led TF over towards Phy. Upon reaching their destination, TF whispered, “Don’t do anything rash.” “Too late,” Phy said elbowed the bandit in the chest. The bandit doubled over in pain and Phy drew the bandit’s blade from its sheath. “Alright nobody moves or this guy gets it,” Phy said, hoisting the blade over the fallen bandit’s neck. Instead of showing any panic, the head bandit simply laughed. “You think you can threaten us boy,” he mocked? In unison, the three bandits moved forward. A single bead of sweat rolled down Phy’s face. “I’m warning you,” Phy repeated while his hands shook. Without warning, the bandits charged causing Phy to close his eyes and brace for impact. But the sound the thunderous feet stopped and TF gasped. Phy opened his eyes and to his astonishment, a robed figured stood before them swinging a lance in a wide arc, knocking the bandits backward. “Out of our way,” the head bandit growled. The figure simply pointed its lance at him, reaching within an inch from his throat. “You will leave if you know what’s good for you,” the person spoke in a gruff voice. The head bandit gulped and said, “Fine. We’re leaving.” They turned their backs and ran for their lives. Phy wiped the sweat from his face and used the blade to unbind TF. “What about this one,” TF asked, nodding at the remaining trembling bandit. The figured swiftly moved forward and smacked the figure with the flat side of their spear. The bandit slumped to the floor in an unconscious state. Without any words, the figure turned and started to head out in the same directions that the bandits had fled. TF bent down to examine the bandit’s condition while Phy followed the figure. “Hey thanks for your help back there…not that we needed it,” he said. Instead of responding the figure kept moving on. “Um…you do realize that there is nothing that way except the country border and beyond that is Nohr?” “My goal is in Nohr and nothing will get in my way,” the figure responded. “Your goal,” Phy wondered? “Somewhere in Nohr, someone important to me is being held captive. And I’ve been training my whole life for this.” “You’re going to be a one man army against an entire country? Do you not see any problems with that plan,” Phy noted as TF caught up to them. The figure remained silent. “It doesn’t matter.” “How about we go with you,” Phy blurted out, causing TF’s mouth to drop. “What are you thinking,” TF frantically whispered? “We don’t know how to properly defend ourselves and we don’t know anything about this stranger and the people of Nohr will end up chew us up for breakfast!” “Just chill TF. I’m adding some excitement to our lives,” Phy whispered back. Raising his voice he added, “So how about it? I mean we do owe you for backing us up back there.” The figure regarded Phy’s offer. “Very well…but you will carry your own weight. I can’t be expected to do all the work…like today.” “Done,” Phy responded as he moved to stand next to the robed person, leaving a horror-struck TF behind. “So what’s your name?” The figure twitched. “My name? It’s…er… Red.” “Well nice to meet you Red. I’m Phy and that coward over there is Trent although he prefers to be called TF.” “I’m pleased to make your acquaintance. Now…shall we venture forth?” Phy nodded and together they moved forward. TF remained stuck in his spot. “Oh bother…what to do. What do I do?” “Come on TF,” Phy called out. TF let out an augh. “Dad’s going to kill us,” TF cried out, but nonetheless he ran and caught up to Phy and Red.